The end of catch and release for illegal aliens?

Jazz ShawPosted at 8:31 am on April 7, 2018

It’s a slight variation of the old adage which cautions us to be careful what we wish for. Pretty much since the day of Donald Trump’s inauguration, opponents of border security and supporters of illegal aliens have been warning that the new White House administration was planning a “crackdown” on persons who are in the country illegally. Up until now, the policy of the DoJ, Homeland Security and ICE has been to prioritize the detention and removal of illegals who are also guilty of additional, more serious crimes. This was the policy of the Obama administration as well.

But now it sounds as if President Trump is going to go ahead and do what liberals were already accusing him of anyway. A new memo signed on Friday signals an end to the “catch and release” policy for illegal aliens. (Reuters)

U.S. President Donald Trump signed a memorandum on Friday ordering the end of a policy, known as “catch and release,” in which illegal immigrants are released from detention while awaiting a court hearing on their status.

Perhaps even more interesting is that Reuters mentions a request sent from the President to Defense Secretary Jim Mattis, looking for a list of “military facilities” which might be used to detain illegal aliens.

Meanwhile, that attitude seems to be reflected in new policies regarding illegal aliens caught crossing the border. The Attorney General made a joint announcement on the same day saying that a zero-tolerance policy was going into effect and anyone caught jumping the border should be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. It doesn’t take much imagination to conclude that this move is aimed, at least in part, at the “caravan” which has been in the news so much this week. (Washington Times)

Attorney General Jeff Sessions on Friday ordered federal prosecutors to take a “zero tolerance policy” toward illegal immigrants nabbed at the U.S.-Mexico border, saying they should be prosecuted to the fullest extent possible.

U.S. attorneys in Arizona, New Mexico, southern California and southern and west Texas were told to prosecute every person Homeland Security officers and agents catch attempting to enter the U.S. illegally, “to the extent practicable.”

“You are on the front lines of this battle,” Mr. Sessions said in a memo to the prosecutors.

Worthy goals to be sure, but you have to question exactly how far our resources can be stretched in this effort. Arranging for military facilities to handle detention duty is an interesting approach, but it assumes a few things. First, do we have that much empty, secure space on our military bases to hold a significant number of detainees, not to mention the manpower, food, medical facilities and other support resources to keep them there? Also, we’ve already discussed the massive backlog of deportation cases awaiting adjudication. Those people could be in detention for a long time.

The other question is the same one which cropped up when the President was talking about sending the military to help with border security. Can the Army, for example, actually act as jailers for non-military personnel on domestic military bases without running into problems with the Posse Comitatus Act? I’m not saying it’s a non-starter, but someone will clearly have to answer the question.

In either case, they need to be ready for an influx of detainees. Enforcement across the country seems to be on the upswing. ICE just raided a meatpacking plant in a rural section of Tennessee and took nearly 100 illegal aliens into custody. Nearly a dozen were wanted on federal or state charges, but the rest were arrested for being in the country illegally. About three dozen of those were released for unspecified reasons, but the rest are all being detained.

This, of course, has the usual list of suspects up in arms about how terrible it all is. (Washington Post, emphasis added)

“People are panicked,” said Stephanie Teatro, co-executive director of the Tennessee Immigrant and Refugee Rights Coalition, a statewide organization that swept into the small town and set up intake centers where relatives could report their loved ones missing. “People are terrified to drive. People are terrified to leave their homes.”

She makes it sound like “a bad thing” but that’s actually the idea. If you are in the country illegally and holding down a job thanks to an employer who knowingly hires illegals, you should be panicked. ICE acting director Thomas Homan has repeatedly warned everyone that there were going to be more workplace raids. And in addition to detaining and deporting the illegals, they were looking to prosecute the employers who act as a magnet for illegal aliens.

Has anyone stopped to consider how many low-skill jobs for actual citizens might be opened up now that the illegal workers are gone? How in the world do you look at this situation and root for the illegals while not caring about opening up jobs for people who are actually entitled to hold them?